To demonstrate the keen sense of smell of an arson dog, Bailey 5th grade GT students lined up to see if Sadie could detect the shoe that had an accelerant on them.

Paris Firefighter Matthew Jones spoke to the Bailey Intermediate 5th grade Gifted and Talented students about his job as an arson dog trainer and handler. During a brown bag lunch, Shelly Biven’s students learned what Jones does as an arson dog specialist.

Once a GT student at Bailey and a 2003 North Lamar graduate, Jones began working with the Paris Fire Department in 2014. He traveled to Maine where he and Sadie spent a month of intensive training by Maine Specialty Dogs through the State Farm Aaron Dog program. Sadie became certified under the Maine Criminal Justice Academy guidelines and is able to detect ignitable liquids commonly used by arsonists to start fires. As a team, K-9 Sadie and Matt assist in investigating fires in Paris and the surrounding cities.